Apple has lost two patent lawsuits against Samsung and Motorola over touchscreen technology, ending the iPhone maker's victorious summer of litigation.

A court in Mannheim, Germany, decided that Sammy and Google-owned Moto are in the clear after Apple claimed the pair infringed its broad "touch event" patent. The technology at the heart of the legal quarrel describes how a device reacts to one or more fingertip touches on its display.

"We welcome today’s ruling, which affirms our position that our products do not infringe Apple’s intellectual property," Samsung said in an emailed statement.

"For decades, we have heavily invested in pioneering the development of technological and design innovations in the mobile industry, which have been constantly reflected in our products. We will continue to further develop and introduce products that enhance the lives of German consumers."

The touch-event patent is the same one that a UK court cleared phone-maker HTC of infringing, and also declared invalid anyway. It is seen as a wide-ranging design that, if upheld against a Cupertino rival, could require a complete overhaul of the infringing gadget's Google Android operating system and its apps to avoid paying out a royalty.